


Resist the Pull and the Electricity

by ghostfox11



Series: Magnet [2]
Category: The Rookie (TV 2018)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-23
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:27:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23810809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ghostfox11/pseuds/ghostfox11
Summary: After another terrible shift, Lucy finds herself at Tim's door. As they both try to cope with their feelings, whilst trying to work out if the other feels the same, will they decide if a relationship is worth the risk?
Relationships: Tim Bradford & Lucy Chen, Tim Bradford/Lucy Chen
Series: Magnet [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1695028
Comments: 14
Kudos: 107





	Resist the Pull and the Electricity

**Author's Note:**

> This is the second part to the Magnet series. You don't need to have read the first part to understand this one but it might give more context.  
> Trigger Warnings: Vague mentions of child abuse and the death of a child.

Ever since Tim had shown up at Lucy’s door, carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders, Lucy found herself more and more drifting into a daze with her thoughts all leading to the same thing: him. They'd never directly spoken about that night. Both seemed to have made a silent truce that they wouldn’t let it affect their relationship. And, so far, it hadn’t. At least not directly.

Except, Tim now called her ‘Lucy’ when he was being particularly friendly or when he was saying something meaningful. She was still ‘Boot’ on the job, even after she graduated. Or else, it was ‘Chen’ when she did something well, or when he didn’t want to disrespect her in front of other officers or criminals. But it was ‘Lucy’ when they met for a drink post shift and ‘Lucy’ when he said goodbye at the end of a hard day. Again, neither had addressed it, but she had a feeling that he knew she had noticed. And that she liked it.

She looked across at him sitting at full alert, his attention focused on the street outside. Having been paired together for the shift because Jackson had called in sick, they had stopped at a small diner after Tim had offered to buy her lunch if she caught a runaway criminal before he did. Not being his Boot anymore, but with his senior rank, she did have to follow Tim's order to chase the guy down. However, it was the look in his eye as he had dared her that had her running immediately.

It was at such times when she wondered if he also knew she had feelings for him beyond that for a partner or a friend. Sometimes she could even convince herself that he might feel the same. The night he spent at her apartment aside, she had noticed small things for weeks now, if not months, but they could, for the most part, be explained away. Like how he knew her order when they met at the food truck, but she was sure most close friends would know that. Or how he had acted all grouchy when she mentioned she was going on a date with Emmet, but that could have been his overprotective self talking.

Other things were harder to dismiss. Like when she caught him watching her when he thought she wasn’t looking. It happened on shift, almost every time they rode together, when she was babbling in the shop or singing along quietly to the radio on the rare occasion he let her put it on. But truthfully she wasn't sure if she was just imagining it. With a heavy sigh she turned to look out into the street that Tim was so intent on watching. 

Meanwhile, Tim watched Lucy as she didn’t touch the plate of food in front of her and instead looked out into the street as he had been doing just moments before. However, whereas he had been closely watching a group of youths, he could tell that she was lost in thought again.

He would be lying if he said he hadn’t noticed how bizarre she had been acting lately. They would be fine one minute and then the next she would stare off into space, clearly lost in her own head. Any time he brought her out of it she acted embarrassed and shrugged him off if he showed any concern.

He didn’t want to push her, but he also desperately wanted to help her. He had tried his best to find a common denominator in all of it but so far, the only one he had found was him. And he didn’t know what to make of it.

Lucy frowned as she continued to try to recount all of the evidence she had that Tim might feel the same way. There was one event that she kept going back to: the night at the bar when she showed up wearing a skirt. Gauging his reaction might have been a part of her choice of attire, she couldn’t deny it. For her, skirts and dresses were saved strictly for fancier occasions when wearing pants was completely out of the question. But when she had opened her wardrobe that night her gaze had found the red material tucked at the back and she had thought that she owed it to science to run a little experiment. With brighter lipstick than she would usually wear and a pair of black stilettos, she had headed out with Jackson who had thankfully not commented beyond chocking on his beer and telling her she looked hot. 

They’d arrived at the bar to find it packed but, with dismay, Lucy had realized there was no sign of Tim. She had tried to quench her disappointment that she had worn a skirt for no reason whatsoever, tried to chastise herself for wearing it for him in the first place, when he had arrived and made the whole plan worthwhile. 

She had been standing at the bar waiting to collect their drinks (she did it every time now and no one questioned it), when she'd heard the door open and turned automatically towards the noise. She'd caught his gaze immediately and watched as he froze. His eyes had flickered down to her exposed legs and back up again. From the angle he was at she was sure he'd caught a glimpse of her ass too.

Tim had swallowed, no one else would have noticed it but she did. And then he’d moved towards her. Suddenly, he seemed to have realized what he was doing, at which point he had darted towards the table the other TOs were sitting at. His sudden change didn’t matter to her, for the look in his eyes had confirmed her hypothesis: he definitely found her attractive too.

She could feel his eyes on her now, but it didn’t have the desired effect of pulling her out of her daydream. Instead it only served to remind her of how later that night, when they'd both had more than a reasonable amount to drink, he'd proved just how right she was.

Tim had slid next to her to lean against the bar with the excuse of helping her carry back another round. His hip had rested against the wood so that he could look down at her. Even with her heels and his stance there had still been a significant enough distance that his height should have been intimidating but for Lucy the distance had begged to be closed.

“Tough shift today Boot.” Tim had noted. He had provided back up for her and Jackson at an in-progress robbery. They'd been in a shoot out with the robbers for fifteen minutes before Tim had arrived and scaled the outside wall to help bring them to surrender by cornering them. He hadn’t let it go all shift.

Lucy had smiled up at him. “Yes, sir it was. Didn’t help you were riding my ass the whole time.”

Lucy remembered the next part in great detail, could picture it perfectly in her mind’s eye, how Tim had slowly allowed his gaze to drop and then crawl back up her body to meet hers. How he had leaned closer and caused her heart to stop completely when he whispered, “Oh trust me, you would know if that happened.”

And then he had picked up his half of the drinks and walked away leaving her gasping in his wake.

So, assuming she was right, and he cared a bit too much, and he thought she was hot, did that mean he wanted to take it any further?

She wasn’t so sure. 

It wouldn’t be against the rules exactly. Sure, he had trained her, but he wasn’t her TO anymore. As long as they weren’t partnered together it would be above board. But the backlash wouldn’t be pleasant. Consequently, she found herself right back at the start when she was dating Nolan, being afraid of what everyone else would think, and how it could subsequently affect her career. 

But this felt different. She and Nolan were having fun. It was never supposed to be serious until it almost was. And then it was over. What she had with Tim was already, well, _more._

A terse cough interrupted Lucy’s musings and she looked up at Tim from where he sat across from her.

It was only as she looked at him now, staring at her over a cup of coffee, with his confused look that demanded answers, that she considered whether he had let her win so that she would agree to lunch.

However, the look also made her realize that she had been silent for a long time, almost as soon as they had sat down. She just hoped he hadn’t noticed when her spiral really started: the second the waitress had joked that they would make a cute couple and asked if partners ever became romantically involved like they did on TV.

Lucy shook her head to clear the last of her daze away and tried to smile at the man in front of her. “Sorry,” she offered, not sure how to follow it. Luckily, she didn’t have to for their radio’s crackled with a call from dispatch.

* * *

Once more, after a tough shift Lucy was left with an erratic heartbeat and shortness of breath. But it was from panic rather than lust.

They had left the diner to drive to the scene of a shooting. A boy had been shot in a drive by. Tim and Lucy had arrived just in time to watch him bleed out in his wailing mother’s arms. He was only six years old. They hadn’t caught the bastard that did it. 

_Yet_. Lucy corrected herself. They hadn’t caught the bastard _yet_. Because she knew they wouldn’t give up trying. She and Tim had only left the precinct after it was deemed that 18 hours was too long for one shift. The detectives had assured them they would continue to fight again tomorrow. 

They had barely spoken on their way out. Truthfully, Lucy hadn’t spoken a word all day not related to the case. And now, in her empty apartment with Jackson sleeping at Sterling’s again, she leaned over to check her phone for what felt like the thousandth time. It had been two hours. She would have to wait another ten before she would be allowed to clock in and she was still nowhere near sleep.

She groaned and turned her pillow over, desperate to try to get comfortable enough to find rest. But, every time she closed her eyes, she saw that poor boy and his mom. She'd signed up for the pain of the job, the good days and the bad and she had seen a lot already. Hell, she’d survived a serial killer before she had even graduated. But it didn’t make any of it easier. The bad days still sucked.

Perhaps it was the stress of the day making her go mad, or simply because she needed it so badly, but, without really thinking about it, she found herself reaching for her phone and typing a message to Tim.

_You up?_ she asked, pleasantries seeming pointless.

It was a simple check in she told herself. They were friends now and that’s what friends did.

Tim swallowed. His head already filling with worst case scenarios about why she would be messaging him despite the rational part of him saying that he knew exactly why she was reaching out. _Yes_. He replied.

Lucy sighed. He never was a man of many words.

_I can’t stop thinking about_ it she typed. There was no point beating around the bush. She knew honesty was usually the best way to get through to him.

And then he surprised her as her phone lit up with him calling.

“Hello,” she answered. She could hear the trepidation in her own voice and cursed herself for it.

“Hello”, he breathed, “sorry I just can’t handle the texting thing. Feels like I’m talking to a robot.” His confession was the truth, mostly. But it was also an excuse. After a crappy shift like today, the pain of going home to an empty house always felt more raw.

Lucy laughed quietly, “I know that feeling. I had to put up with it for two years riding with you,” she joked and smiled as she got her desired response of a growled “watch it.” Pushing his buttons would always be fun especially now that it wouldn’t end with her doing push ups or with her face covered in flour.

Tim rolled his eyes at her usual chirping. He wouldn’t have let any of his other Boots talk to him the way she did. He knew Lopez had noticed, and others probably would have too. But he couldn’t help it. For some reason, when she did it, it filled him with more joy than anger, perhaps that’s why he was harsher on her sometimes: to cover it.

“Tell me it gets easier Tim,” Lucy asked, immediately grounding them both. “That one day I’ll get to come home after a day like today and not feel like this much of a failure.”

Tim sighed on the other end and was quiet for a few moments before he replied. “I can’t tell you that. But I can tell you that, with time, you can separate the good from the bad and you learn how to not let the bad overshadow the times you do make a difference.”

Lucy smiled. After a few seconds she replied, “We got sent home to sleep but I haven’t felt this wired in a while.”

“Tell me about it,” Tim admitted. He was quiet again, but she could sense that he was merely thinking something through. “I was thinking of taking Kojo out for a run. Wanna join?”

“Yeah, please,” Lucy immediately answered, sliding out the bed and getting changed into leggings and a loose top. She hoped that he didn’t sense her hastiness.

“See you in ten.” Tim said and hung up.

The drive to Tim’s place didn’t take long. She'd been once after she was designated driver on the pub night, so she knew the route. However, the streets were quieter at this time of night and, without him sitting next to her, she could really admire the area. The park, the school, the neat gardens with children’s bikes and swing-sets. It was a family neighborhood. He had obviously bought the house when he and Isabel had stayed together. Maybe they had planned on having kids there. The idea brought tears to Lucy’s eyes.

She pulled up outside and smiled when she saw him and the boxer waiting for her. When she stepped out the car Kojo immediately tried to get closer to her but one sound from Tim and he stopped. It wasn’t even a ‘no’, or a tug on the leash. It was a simple sound of disapproval and the dog, that had caused her so much havoc in just one day, was sitting obediently at his side.

When she was close enough Lucy bent down to shower Kojo with attention and then she rose to smile softy at Tim.

“There’s a park around the corner, thought we could run around the playing field?” Tim suggested. He was struck by the ease of Lucy’s smile, but he could sense her tension and the pain was still present in her eyes.

Lucy nodded.

They walked at a slow pace. The cold night made it more refreshing but by the time they reached the field Lucy knew she would have to run to stay warm.

Earlier she'd really wanted to talk about her day. When Jackson had said he was staying at Sterling’s she'd almost asked him to stay. But she hadn’t wanted to seem weak or to worry him, so she hadn’t mentioned it. However now, walking alongside Tim, she found that she didn’t feel the need to talk about it so much. They had both experienced it. She knew he carried the same weight as she did. And so, it didn’t need spoken. Just being near him made the weight seem lighter and she just hoped it was the same for him.

“You’re good with him,” she said to fill the silence. Tim looked down at her with a confident smirk.

“Course I am Boot, ordering people around is what I do, you know that better than anyone.”

Lucy laughed. “True. But I like to think I’m a bit different to a dog. This,” she gestured to the slack way he held the lead whilst Kojo walked obediently at his side, “seems familiar to you.”

Tim frowned and looked down at Kojo who was sniffing a tree. Images immediately came to his mind of the first dog he had trained. He would usually bury them but, walking alongside Lucy on a quiet night after a tough shift, he found himself willing to let this dark thought escape into the air rather than settle inside him. “I had a dog growing up. Molly. She was a black Labrador. Used to teach her tricks out the back yard to stay away from my Dad. Mom gave her to an Aunt after my Dad threatened to kill her when she jumped in front of one of his kicks meant for me.”

Lucy froze, the sudden admission taking her off guard.

Tim couldn’t look at her, afraid of what he would see on her face.

“A lap round the track sound good Boot?” He asked, just as he sensed she was about to speak. Telling her a bit about one of the darkest parts of his life was one thing but he wasn’t ready to hear what she thought about it just yet. 

Lucy sensed his need for distraction and decided to let him have it. “Okay,” she spoke softly. And then she took off at a sprint, “But winner drives shop tomorrow.”

Even with the head start, Tim caught up with her quickly. They were neck and neck for a few meters before he gained some ground after she slipped slightly in the muck. However, Kojo, who had been running on his own alongside them, cut across Tim after a bird caught his attention and Tim, distracted by gloating that he was going to win, tripped over him and tumbled onto the grass.

Lucy easily raced past him and touched the tree they were standing next to when they started.

“Ha, I’m driving!” she announced victoriously.

But Tim didn’t have any snarky comment for her and instead she heard him groan and only then she noticed that he was clutching his arm. Immediately feeling terrible, Lucy ran to him.

“Oh my god Tim are you alright?” she said looking down at his face contorted in pain.

“Can you give me a hand up?” he asked.

She took his offered hand, but no sooner has she securely grasped it with hers, than he pulled her down on top of him.

She squealed as she fell, landing solidly on Tim’s chest with an “oomf” from them both.

Doing her best to appear annoyed she glared down at him but their noses almost brushed, their breaths mingling in the air.

Lucy swallowed. It would take a fraction of a distance to close the gap. Just centimeters and his lips would be on hers.

Tim smiled up at her, his eyes dropping to her lips, if he just reached up, he could taste them.

But, before either could act, Kojo barrelled into them causing them to have to jump apart to avoid banging heads.

“Kojo!” Tim admonished. The dog immediately sat beside them, tilting his head to the side as though confused as to what he had done wrong.

Tim helped Lucy to stand and then turned his back to her to fix the leash back on Kojo.

“So, your arm’s alright then?” Lucy asked the back of his head.

Tim merely nodded.

“Good, then I’m driving guilt free all shift.”

The walk back to Tim’s house was painfully awkward. Lucy couldn’t think of anything to say to make conversation and her mouth was too dry to form words even if she had wanted to. If there had been any doubt before of whether or not Tim had feelings for her beyond that of a colleague, there wasn’t anymore. Their almost kiss had made that perfectly clear. But that didn’t mean they could act on it. She was not long qualified, and he was still technically her superior. If they acted now it would seem as though she had slept her way through training.

Lucy felt her feet drag across the ground awkwardly and the air around her grow cold from the sweat that now glistened across her skin. The heat radiating from Tim was tempting and it only served to intensify her anger. She had promised herself that her job would be worth more than any man. It was her focus and her purpose. No man was worth jeopardizing it. But with Tim she could picture something real, as opposed to a fling. With him she could almost believe they would have something that would make the rumors and potential damage to her career worth it. Yet, even though she knew Tim wasn’t the sleeping around type, there was a part of her that couldn’t let go of the idea that she still didn't really know if he was willing to jump into a relationship with her. None of what he had shown gave her concrete proof of something more than lust and, until she had that, she didn’t see how acting on her feelings would ever be worth the risk.

Tim felt Lucy tense beside him, and he knew that she was lost in another one of her daydreams again. Fuck did he regret pulling her down. It had seemed funny at the time. He was just looking to distract her from the tough shift, maybe from the gloating too, and now he had to live with the idea that she knew he liked her. Sure, he hadn’t exactly been subtle lately, but it was getting harder to shut off the part of himself that wanted her. He found himself facing the same dilemma that kept him up at night. He knew he cared about her too much and, having to constantly stop himself from acting on it, having to remind himself of the damage he would cause her career, having to tell himself that he didn’t really know if she wanted something serious with him, was becoming impossible. And he could only find one solution.

He had to leave.

In a dream world Lucy would want to give a relationship a go. If they weren’t working together in the same station they could hide it easier until enough time had passed to prove that she was a good cop in her own merit, not that _he_ didn’t think she had done so already. On the flip side, even if she didn’t want to make a go of it, then at least he wouldn’t have to put himself through the turmoil of wanting what he couldn’t have. He wouldn’t have to face the pain of chasing a dream, again.

Tim turned to Lucy as they reached his driveway. It occurred to him as he looked down at her that they hadn’t actually discussed their day at all. He knew she liked to talk things out and he had been expecting to listen to her talk for the duration of their run. Truthfully, he had been looking forward to it. Whilst he didn’t like talking things out the way she did, he found comfort in listening to her do it. He cleared his throat awkwardly and decided that he would give her some parting advice at least, “You know drive-bys are the hardest to solve-"

“No motivation, no witnesses, no suspects, I know.” Lucy interrupted him. The night's events had distracted her from the day they had had. Mostly. Hearing how difficult tomorrow was going to be was the opposite of what she needed right now.

“But that doesn’t mean we won’t catch this one,” Tim finished.

Lucy smiled up at him in surprise. They shared a knowing look until Lucy forced herself to break it. “I’ll see you tomorrow Tim, nice and early. And remember to get the war bags whilst I start the shop.”

Tim's eyes narrowed but she watched his lips twitch into a smile. “Just don’t crash this time.” he retorted.

And, with that smirk, and his kind words replaying in her mind, Lucy found sleep much easier than she imagined. Having Tim as a partner and friend would be enough for now.

Tim on the other hand tossed and turned for hours running through the pros and cons of his choice before he decided for certain: he would take the next Sergent's position he was offered.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you very much for reading, any kudos or comments will be very much appreciated. I'm sorry for the cliffhanger but, (spoiler?) the next part is rated E.


End file.
